Top Ten Tuesday: Rounding out the Week

Last week I had a stressful week. I won't get into details simply because talking about it won't change it; it has already happened and I want to get past it. It was nothing major, just back-from-a-week-long-vacation-petty-nonsense-scheduling-busy kind of stuff. I won't complain any further because y'all know I love my job and I have nothing to squawk about.

However, last weekend surely made up for my lack of pleasure during the week. Below are the top ten things that happened between Friday and Sunday to wash the bad taste out of my mouth.

10. On Friday I received gifts from my friend, Jenn. It's not just exciting because I love gifts, the gifts were exciting because her gifts NAILED me. First of all, I got the tote bag I've been drooling over, the kind of drool that soaks the upper part of your shirt. In the bag were two items. The first was Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends... book on tape... his voice reading his poems!!! I loved it. I *almost* started crying. Shel is important to me because he's a writer who always makes me laugh and/or think. I often share his poems with my kids. But, the main reason I love him so? My sister taught me to read by reading to me from Where the Sidewalk Ends. I would ask her read me "Melinda Mae" and "Sick" over and over and over and over (and she would.) I have now added "Peanut-Butter Sandwich" to my list of favorites because I know Jenn loves that one.

The last part of the gift was the part that made me cry. It was a handmade box full of wonderful things about me, my work, and some funny times/moments we've shared. I couldn't read it in front of her but when I got home I went into my birdroom and took some time to go through each slip of paper. I definitely had a favorite and felt so blessed that this particular person gets me. I'm gruff, brass and have a hard outer shell; she gets it and likes it. We amuse each other.

9. We had my favorite meal for dinner Friday -- shishkabob!

8. I took a "quick nap" Friday evening... from 7pm to 2am. Oops ;) Thank you, Aaron, for letting me sleep so soundly and doing all the chores. I must have needed the sleep!

7. On Saturday I spent the entire afternoon at Barnes & Noble and Michael's. When I got home I curled up in my reading nook and read the afternoon away.

6. My Dad came to visit, unexpectedly, on Saturday evening and we went to Applebee's for dinner.

                          

                             

5. Aaron and I watched SNL with Betty White. I didn't quite make it until 1:00 but it's on the DVR. We haven't vegged out in front of the tube for a long time. It felt good. ;)

4. I made killer blueberry muffins and a tasty fruit dish for breakfast.

3.  We drove down to Boston on Sunday with Aaron's Mom and Grandma to have an amazing meal at Matt & Nelson's house to celebrate Mother's Day.

My *Beautiful* Mother (in-law)

2. While dinner was being prepared, Aaron and I dashed off to a BRAND NEW Trader Joe's right around the corner and stocked up on our favorites!

(1.5) While leaving TJ's we spotted this giant red-tailed-hawk's nest and... he was in it! It made me sad because of urban sprawl but happy the hawk is so resilient!

1. I received a thoughtful card and a bouquet of flowers for Mother's Day- and I'm not really even a Mom (unless you count our beasts which, clearly, Aaron does.)

                                          

A great end to a rough week. That's what life is all about. One of the great things about this blog is while writing this particular post I was able to recall more than ten great things that made a mediocre week a whole lot better, which leads me to believe that sometimes we leave too many heavy stones unturned to find the brilliant happiness beneath. I have amazing people in my life who know me, get me, and love me anyway. And, to give myself some credit, I'm pretty good about making my own happiness.

Menu Monday- Shish-ka-billa-bee-bob

Everyone has a birthday meal. Yeah, you know it. Growing up my sister would always want a specific meal (spare ribs), my mother (lobster) and I honestly don't remember what my dad wanted. Me? I've had a long term love affair with shishkabob since I can remember! Every birthday meal, "Jessi, what do you want?" I would reply "Shish-ka-billa-bee-bob!" I love meat and vegetables on a stick.

On Friday, just for shits-and-grins, (watch my mouth!) Aaron and I cooked up some fantastic shishkabob with sweet potato fries and it wasn't even my birthday!

In order to enjoy this delectable dinner on a skewer you need the perfect marinade. Here is my secret family recipe for the perfect teriyaki marinade.

Linda's Teriyaki Marinade (My Godmother)

• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1 Cup Water
• 1 Cup Soy Sauce (I use lite soy, the recipe is already unhealthy enough)
• 1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1/4 Cup unsweetened pineapple juice (I sometimes substitute lemon juice- you can't tell the difference and I always have lemon juice on hand, rarely pineapple juice)
• 1t garlic (I use real- minced)
• 1t ground ginger

Mix all the ingredient together in a bowl and add cubed steak. Soak overnight stirring frequently. I usually soak upwards of 36 hours just to make sure the meat has totally absorbed the flavors. Put on a skewer with your choice of veggies and grill to perfection!

**Secret tip: You can also use this same batch to soak chicken for teriyaki chicken. If you choose to do both, soak the chicken first (24+ hours) so it doesn't absorb the red meat flavor. If you do beef afterward, you won't even know chicken was ever in there. Cook the chicken on the grill with a few grilled pieces of pineapple. Oh-la-la.

  Enjoy!

Fun Fact Thursday: Chihuahuas!

With yesterday being Manny's 5th birthday it only makes sense to kick off Fun Fact Thursday with facts about the Chihuahua breed and my two super canines; complete with pictures of the birthday celebration.

• Bing, born 11/29/04, was named after the strip club, Bada-Bing, on the HBO series Sopranos.
• Manny, born 05/05/05, was *almost* named Ulysses, which is his middle name.
• Chihuahuas weigh from two to twelve pounds and stand six to nine inches tall.
• There are two types of Chihuahuas, long haired and short haired.
• They have apple shaped heads, a pointed muzzle, and large bulging eyes.
• Chihuahuas live to be about 15 years old, but can live to at least 22 years.
• Chihuahuas, named after Chihuahua, Mexico, are thought to be related to rodents. ;)
• Chihuahuas were kept by Aztecs as symbols of power and class.

At the stroke of midnight- his official birthday. I woke him up.

Rise and shine birthday boy!

We went for a LONG walk

And I let them play in the grass.

As we were getting his ice cream ready!

I know, we are certifiable.

It's Cinco De Manny, Oui?

Guess what today is? Today is my youngest canine's birthday. I know people probably find it absolutely absurd that I celebrate the birthday of my animals but if you knew how much they mean to me, and how much they've changed me as a person, you would completely understand.

Manny was born May 5, 2005. Yes that's right, 05-05-05, so 5 is his lucky number ;) He was more of a gift for Bing than he was for me. You see, Bing used to get terribly upset when I would leave for work everyday, to the point where he would sit at the door and cry for hours (according to my neighbors), he wouldn't eat, and sometimes he would make himself so upset that he would throw up. Finally, it was time to get him a companion.

I rescued Manny from a puppy mill not far from here. He was living in a mobile home full, *FULL* of puppies. Most of them had their larynx altered so they could no longer bark. Manny was just over 18 weeks old when I purchased him and a little more than 2 pounds (which is very small-- he was malnourished) His toenails were entirely too long to be comfortable and he stunk to high heaven. The whole ride home I had to have all the windows open.

The poor thing didn't know how to leash walk and he was put up for sale because his testicles didn't drop so they weren't going to breed him. About one month after having him both of his testes dropped (which I promptly had snipped off). The vet explained to me, given his condition, that his testicles probably hadn't dropped because he wasn't given the opportunity to exercise at all.

Of everyone who loves Manny, Bing probably loves his bro-bro the most. He will spend hours cleaning Manny's ears and eyes. If Manny makes the smallest noise Bing will have to come check on him to make sure he's alright. He lets Manny have everything (toys, treats, my lap), they rarely fight and they could play together for hours.

Manny wasn't an easy puppy at first. He used to nip at people and, if you got to close to his face area, he would lunge at you. He must have been around a year old when he would finally let me kiss his face. Now, he wouldn't dream of ever biting people and if you make eye contact with him he'll interpret that as you initiating cuddle time and he'll insist you hold him for the next 3 hours. He is really a funny dog and he makes me laugh on a daily basis. He's quite the butt-in-ski and that's one of his many nicknames.

I honestly can't believe he's 5 today. It kind of makes me sad, actually. I credit my dogs with teaching me tenderness. If many of you knew me before I had the boys I was by no means warm and fuzz, Bing and Manny taught me how to love unconditionally and how good it feels to be vulnerable sometimes.

Happy Birthday Manstance. We love you so much!

While Bing and Manny are not registered voters they, like their Mama, are "Repuplicans" ;)

Yes, he has a bathrobe. Jealous?

Before his weight loss. He got up to 13 lbs! Oops! Now he's back down around 7.

Reading the paper at camp with Daddy.

                                  

Some of these pictures were from our first apartment when Aaron and I first moved in together. Ahh, memories.

Manny is a Mama's boy. He likes to pretend he came from my womb.

I will post more about his celebration tomorrow. Of course we're having a party. Did you actually think we were sane? There will be a party tonight ;)

Top Ten Tuesday: Vacation Fun

Aaron had school vacation last week so I took the week off to be home with him. We threw around ideas of going a few places but, when everything was said and done, we stuck close to home and scratched some projects off our to-do lists. Below are ten of the many things we did during our April vacation.

10. Eat, eat, eat! We kicked off vacation by going out for a nice dinner and made elaborate meals all week.We (re)discovered bruschetta; I'd hadn't tried it before, boy-oh-boy, it's dangerous.

9. Went to Portland to celebrate my Pepe's 88th birthday.
8. On one of the rainy days we lazed around with the boys and we did "nothing." I love "nothing days."

7. I read a book one day and started another a few days later. I bought and finished the memoir, This is Not the Story You Think it is: A Season of Unlikely Happiness by Laura Munson. It was amazing and, true to its title, it wasn't what I thought it would be. I loved it. I later started The Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick. I'm about halfway through and so far so good.
6. Aaron made two bird houses from some wood we had laying around and we're going to decorate them for an upcoming "date night."

Almost finished... They just need to be sanded and have tops added then we can decorate them!

5. We had our friends (and their Chihuahua) over for burgers on the grill.
4. Yard work, Yard work, Yard work!
3. I did quite a bit of crafting. I find that so relaxing and therapeutic.
2. We had our stumps removed!!! Finally! Since the trees fell in February we've been waiting for everything to dry out enough to have them removed. The nice people at Stumps Are Us drilled them out.

1. We started the shopping for our landscaping ideas. Yikes! What a job that is going to be.